Bruins Set to Repeat Atop Northeast Division
Despite Kessel's Trade to Toronto, Boston Returns a Talented Group
Before the 2008-2009 season, the Boston Bruins hadn’t come anywhere near the top of the Northeast Division since before the infamous NHL lockout. Their playoff run in the 2007-2008 season as the #8 seed in the Eastern Conference was considered by many to be a fluke, an aberration that would see them return to the bottom of their division and conference soon enough.
Even in Boston, nobody believed that they were good enough to come out on top of anything, yet there they were at the end of last season with 116 points and a comfortable #1 seed with plenty of breathing room over their hated rivals from Montreal. The unexpected jump from last-to-first in just two seasons restored faith and energy to a city used to cheering for every team except for the B’s.
Entering 2009-2010, some familiar faces are missing but the Bruins are positioned to come out on top of the Northeast Division again, as they return much of the same mix of youth and experience that worked so well for them last season.
Bruins Backed by Tim Thomas
The athletic Tim Thomas has established himself as a premier goaltender at the NHL level, and should benefit from the trust that the Bruins have shown him by not bringing back the overpriced, and disappointing, Manny Fernandez. Instead, Thomas will mentor top prospect Tukka Rask while shouldering much of the workload for the season. Even if he doesn’t repeat as a Vezina winner this season, the competitive Thomas gives Boston a distinct edge on any given night.
Thomas only makes up a third of the award-winning trifecta from Boston, as captain Zdeno Chara and coach Claude Julien also return as incumbent award winners from last season. This collection of hardware only serves to remind the Bruins of the next step that they need to take, echoing the age old adage that individual awards mean nothing without team success. This group of Bruins hasn’t changed that much by way of personnel since being ousted by Montreal in 2007; the experience together makes the group hungrier than it has been in past years.
In fact, the Bruins return a group of forwards that is still young and as talented as any in the game, anchored by the experience of veterans Marc Savard, Michael Ryder and Mark Recchi.
Phil Kessel Can't Rescue the Maple Leafs
Noticeably absent from the roster is right wing Phil Kessel, who was traded within the division to the Toronto Maple Leafs. While pundits might question the deal, the Bruins obtained key draft picks for the future while giving up a player that didn’t fit into their salary cap plans. And, although adding a scorer of Kessel’s caliber is never a bad thing, Toronto is much more in need of help on the defensive side of things as they ranked dead last in the NHL in 2008-2009 in goals against.
Northeast Division Roundup
The rest of the Northeast Division remains a question mark and mostly unimproved going into the regular season as well, leaving the Bruins open to repeat. Neither the Sabres or Senators did anything to improve their chances; in fact, Ottawa took a major step backward with the loss of star left wing Dany Heatley. Despite picking up Jonathan Cheechoo in the trade, the Senators took a giant step backward and should be an afterthought in the division by midseason.
This all leaves the Montreal Canadiens, only one year removed from their own Northeast Division title and coming off a hectic offseason of retooling and player movement. With several key additions in every area of the ice, the success of the Habs’ season this year will come down to just how well new coach Jacques Martin can get his team to come together after a season that saw disappointment and underachievement in their centennial season.
With all of these factors in mind, the Boston Bruins should repeat as Northeast Division champions and, what’s more important, find themselves playing much deeper into the playoffs in 2010 than they did the past two seasons.
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